romanchurchesfandomcom-20200216-history
Santo Stefano Rotondo al Celio
Santo Stefano Rotondo al Celio is the Hungarian national church, primarily dedicated to St Stephen the Deacon and also to St Stephen of Hungary. It has the status of a minor basilica, and is located on the Via di Stefano Rotondo on the summit of the Caelian Hill. Pictures of the church at Wikimedia Commons. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Santo_Stefano_Rotondo There is an English Wikipedia page. [2] History The first church was consecrated in the time of Pope St Simplicius (468-483), or possibly in 460, to hold the relics of St Stephen, protomartyr of the Church. His tomb had been discovered Kafr Gamala in the Holy Land in 415. It was later rededicated to St Stephen of Hungary. This was the first circular church in Rome, and it was modelled on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and is also quite similar to Santa Costanza. The circumference and diameter of Santo Stefano is almost exactly the same as those of the Holy Sepulchre. Strangely, the church does not appear among the tituli in the synod list of 499. It is thought that it may have been financed by the wealthy Valerian family, whose estates covered large parts of the Coelian Hill. St Melanie, a member of this family, was a frequent pilgrim to Jerusalem and died there, so the family had connections to the Holy Land. The site housed the Castra Peregrinorum, a large army barracks with an ancient pagan sanctuary to Mithras, a deity that was very popular among soldiers. A gold-covered head from a statue of Mithras was found during excavations beneath the church. The church was then built over these police barracks and it now sits on the Celian Hill in the Rione Celio. It was decorated by Pope John I (523-526) and Pope Felix IV (526-530). These added decorations included mosaics, opus sectile and a great amount of marble flooring. The colonnades were altered by Pope Innocent II (1130-1143), when a series of transverse arches were introduced to support the roof. It was restored by Pope Nicholas V in 1543. The work was carried out by Bernardo Rosselino. Rosselino renovated Santo Stefano Rotondo by putting in windows, marble doors, reformed roofing and a he also put in a new altar, which will be discusses below. Around the same time, it was granted to the "Hungarian Order of Hermits of St Paul". In 1580, the church was entrusted to the Jesuits. Jesuit seminarians were encouraged to go here to see the frescoes of martyrs (see below) and contemplate over the fate that might await them as they went off as missionaries. The church is the property of the German College, and is also the Hungarian national church (Hungary was considered part of the German-speaking countries until after World War I, when it became independent of Austria). It was made part of the Hungarian College in 1589, and this college later merged with the German College. The current titular of the church is H.E. Cardinal Friedrich Wetter, Archbishop Emeritus of Munich and Freising. Exterior It is a centrally-planned church. Its exterior shape is mainly what distinguishes it from other Roman monuments. Although the inside is circular, the exterior is on a cruciform plan. Interior The church originally had three concentric ambulatories, but the outermost has been suppressed. The plan is somewhat confusing. In Jerusalem, it makes sense as it allows a good circulation of pilgrims around the sanctuary. Copying this plan to Rome seems strange in the present day, since there is nothing in the sanctuary to attract pilgrims. However, tradition claims that an important relic was once held here, and it is possible that it was a relic of St Stephen the Deacon. The colonnades of the outermost ambulatory, with 22 Ionic columns, are decorated with frescoes from 1572-1585 of The Agonies of Martyrs, by Niccolò Pomarancio and Antonio Tempesta. The frescoes were ordered by Pope Gregory XIII (1572-1585). The 31 scenes, with inscriptions explaining the scene and naming the emperors who ordered the executions, as well as quotations from the Bible, contain terrifying depictions of suffering. The squeamish and families with children may not appreciate them. For others, they are a good aid in understanding the sufferings of the martyr and the great sacrifices they made for the Faith. The altar was made by the Florentine artist Bernardo Rossellino, who was commissioned by Pope Nicholas V (1447-1455) - as mentioned above he also carried out restorations at the time. The painting in the apse shows Christ between two martyrs. The mosaic and marble decoration is from the period 523 to 530. One mosaic shows the martyrs Primus and Felician flanking a jewelled cross. They were martyred in 305, and their relics were brought here by Pope Theodore I. This transportation of saints' relics is extremely significant. On the left is a tablet recording the burial here of the Irish king Donough O'Brien of Cashel and Thomond, son of Brian Boru, who died in Rome in 1064. An ancient chair in which Pope St. Gregory the Great sat to deliver one of his homilies, in c. 580, is preserved here. To the left by the entrance is the Chapel of Sts Primus and Felician. The chapel was commissioned by Pope Theodore I (642-649). The saints are depicted in a 7th century mosaic, and there are also frescoes depicting their martyrdom and burial. This is one of the rare examples of 7th century mosaic in Rome; another is found in the Baptistery of San Giovanni in Laterano. Legend says that they were brothers from a patrician family, who visited Christians who were waiting for execution in the Roman prisons. Seeing the tortures they suffered, Felician heard that his brother, at the time some 80 years old, had lapsed from the Faith. But he returned, and they were thrown to the lions together. At the arena, they were miraculously saved, and were taken to Nomentum where they were beheaded and buried. Pope Theodore had their relics translated here. The Pope's father, a Greek bishop from Palestine with the same name, was also buried here. Liturgical notes The feast of St Stephen the Deacon is celebrated on 26 December, and this is the station church for that day, meaning that the Holy Father will usually celebrate Mass here. The feast of St Stephen of Hungary is celebrated with great solemnity on 16 August. Access The church is rather hidden away, up a driveway on the south side of the west end of the Via di Stefano Rotondo. There was a long period recently during which the church was almost always locked up, either awaiting restoration or actually being restored. The restoration ended in 2009, but visitors were still finding difficulty with access subsequently. However, the church's website is now displaying opening times for 2012 which will hopefully be accurate. They are: 9:30 to 12:30, 15:00 to 18:00. Closed all day Monday. In winter, the afternoon times are an hour earlier. This is one of the churches in Rome which has an extended closure in August, when native Romans prefer to be on the beach and leave the city to the tourists. The advertised period is from 6th to the 27th. The buses that go past the church (get off at Navicella -Villa Celimontana) are: 81; Risorgimento (near St Peter's) via Torre Argentina and Piazza Venezia to the Lateran. 673; Circo Massimo via Colosseum (south side), not very useful otherwise as it goes down side streets. 117; From the Lateran only, get off at first stop. Beware -return journey has a different route which is nowhere near the church. You still have to walk some distance west of the stop. External links Official diocesan web-page Italian Wikipedia page Church's website "Nuovo Panorami" web-page (article in Italian) "Archaeoroma" web-page with small gallery Info.roma web-page "Greatbuildings" web-page (has useful plan of former and present church superimposed) Roma SPQR web-page with gallery Stefano Rotondo "Romeartlover" web-page "Knowingrome" web-page (with useful bibliography) "Sacred-destinations" web-page (good gallery) Piranesi engraving and some photos on Flickr Photos on Panoramio Youtube video Category:Catholic churches Category:Dedications to St Stephen of Hungary Category:Dedications to St Stephen the Deacon Category:5th century